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Forum|Forum|11 months ago
April 16, 2025
2 replies
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I got married back in 2011,me and my husband have never claimed married on our forms even when we file we claim single, but now I'm not working anymore and he is. Can he claim me next year?

Not A Product Question

SharonD007

No, your spouse can never claim you as a dependent. Your options are Married Filing Jointly (MFJ) or Married Filing Separately (MFS). If you file separately and if you live in a community property state, there are rules about allocating income that you must adhere to.

You get more room for tax breaks when you file MFJ and lower tax rates.

For additional information, review the TurboTax articles Should You and Your Spouse File Jointly or Separately? and Married Filing Separately in community property states

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Angelica2Author

Well he has changed his w2 status from single to married filing jointly. Will that be ok since we never filed married filing jointly? Or should he go back to single status?

xmasbaby0

Employee

The W-4 he gives to his employer only tells the employer how much tax to withhold from his paychecks. That form does not go to the IRS and does not dictate how you have to file your tax return. His tax withholding will be different. What is important is to file correctly using the correct filing status. You have both been making big mistakes by filing as single. Whether it has been to your advantage financially, whether you have "double dipped" by using the same itemized deductions, or whether you have kind of shot yourselves in the foot many times is impossible to know since we have no idea what kind of income you have had or if you have missed out on child-related credits, etc.

**Disclaimer: Every effort has been made to offer the most correct information possible. The poster disclaims any legal responsibility for the accuracy of the information that is contained in this post.**

xmasbaby0

Employee

So you have been filing incorrect tax returns for years----and you are not asking what you should be doing to fix that? If you were legally married, your filing choices were married filing jointly or married filing separately. Filing single was not a legal option. You can amend for at least the last three years to fix the past few years and change to either joint or married filing separately. For your next tax return---a spouse can never be claimed as a dependent. It is better to file a joint return to get the married filing jointly higher standard deduction. For 2025 that amount will be $30,000 + $1600 for each spouse 65 or older or legally blind.

If you were legally married at the end of 2024 your filing choices are married filing jointly or married filing separately.

Married Filing Jointly is usually better, even if one spouse had little or no income. When you file a joint return, you and your spouse will get the married filing jointly standard deduction of $29,200 (+ $1550 for each spouse 65 or older) for 2024. You are eligible for more credits including education credits, earned income credit, child and dependent care credit, and a larger income limit to receive the child tax credit.

If you choose to file married filing separately, both spouses have to file the same way—either you both itemize or you both use standard deduction. Your tax rate will be higher than on a joint return.

Some of the special rules for filing separately include: you cannot get earned income credit, education credits, adoption credits, or deductions for student loan interest. A higher percent of your Social Security benefits may be taxable. Your limit for SALT (state and local taxes and sales tax) will be only $5000 per spouse. In many cases you will not be able to take the child and dependent care credit. The amount you can contribute to a retirement account will be affected. If you live in a community property state, you will be required to provide additional information regarding your spouse’s income. ( Community property states: AZ, CA, ID, LA, NV, NM, TX, WA, WI)

If you are using online TurboTax to prepare your returns, you will need to prepare two separate returns and pay twice since with online, you get one return per fee.

https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tips/marriage/should-you-and-your-spouse-file-taxes-jointly-or-separately/L7gyjnqyM?srsltid=AfmBOopGqCNexowW0pYgvsf7ycIkrx4VjO_63UXv6vSnfu3UEGQiKQTh

https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/income/getting-married-mean-taxes/L2RgmagpE_US_en_US?uid=m69on7t0

https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/taxation/married-filing-separately-community-property/L11CeLUMs_US_en_US?uid=m69ousyh

See this TurboTax support FAQ for amending a tax return -

CURRENT YEAR

https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/tax-return/amend-federal-tax-return-current-year/L7eS6o1qh_US_en_US?uid=lfunevhk

https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/tax-return/amend-change-correct-return-already-filed/L4VjJ9BA2_US_en_US?uid=m76mq6z2

Do not expect quick results from amending. It can take four months or more for the IRS to process an amended return.

You can watch for information here:

https://www.irs.gov/Filing/Individuals/Amended-Returns-(Form-1040-X)/Wheres-My-Amended-Return-1